The Labrador Duck (Camptorhynchus labradorius) was a striking black and white eider-like sea duck that was never common, and is believed to be the first bird to become extinct in North America after 1500. The last Labrador Duck is believed to have been seen at Elmira, New York on December 12, 1878; the last preserved specimen was shot in 1875 on Long Island. It was thought to breed in Labrador, and it wintered from Nova Scotia to as far south as Chesapeake Bay.
Read more about Labrador Duck: Habitat, Other Names, Diet, Extinction
Famous quotes containing the words labrador and/or duck:
“That Cabot merely landed on the uninhabitable shore of Labrador gave the English no just title to New England, or to the United States generally, any more than to Patagonia.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Alice: I put swimsuits in boxes six days a week.
George: Yeah. What about Sunday? Maybe then you put yourself in a swimsuit.
Alice: Oh, not me.
George: Why? You don’t look good in a swimsuit?
Alice: Sure I do. I can’t swim.
George: You’re kidding.
Alice: I never learned. I was even scared of the duck pond when I was a kid.”
—Michael Wilson (1914–1978)